


Permanent Scars

by rox_fanfics



Series: James Barnes Has a Life [5]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: (The violence is just flashbacks), Artist Steve Rogers, BAMF Natasha Romanov, Bisexual Peter Parker, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Has Issues, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Bucky Barnes's Metal Arm, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Domestic Avengers, Field Trip, Good Peter, Hurt Steve Rogers, I Don't Even Know, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Implied/Referenced Torture, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers-centric, M/M, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Non-Serum Steve Rogers/Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes | Shrinkyclinks, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker's Field Trip to Stark Industries, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Natasha Romanov, Protective Steve, Protective Steve Rogers, Protective Tony Stark, Steve Rogers Is a Good Bro, Steve Rogers Needs a Hug, Steve Rogers is Not Captain America, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:35:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24897037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rox_fanfics/pseuds/rox_fanfics
Summary: “I need you to scare some kids with me,” Bucky raised an eyebrow, unimpressed, but Tony just continued, “I found out a few days ago that Peter is being bullied at school-”“By who?” Steve asked, getting up and sounding more dangerous than Tony ever heard Bucky sound (contrary to popular belief, Steve was the scary one in their relationship)“Some asshole named Eugene Thompson. Anyways, Peter’s school is going on a field trip to the Avengers compound, ever since it was announced, Peter’s been getting bullied more. That’s the only reason I know about it, he told me when it got too bad. Should have told me from the start, but that’s beside the point,”~This is part of a series. Reading them in order is strongly recommended.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Peter Parker & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Steve Rogers & Avengers Team
Series: James Barnes Has a Life [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1770085
Comments: 42
Kudos: 842
Collections: It's the Field Trip Trope Fuckers, ohhh that's my shit right there





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't slept in two (2) days

Bucky loved being home on the farm with Steve, it was his happy place and he felt safer here than he ever had surrounded by a half a dozen superheroes. In many ways, Steve was his superhero, and he didn’t need any of the others. 

Yes, having a team of people who could fight well and had powers was something he was grateful for, but he loved his quiet life at home, with someone who had always been there for him. 

So waking up next to his husband of nearly a decade on a warm and sunny Tuesday morning was something he made sure to savor. 

Steve was sleeping peacefully, his eyelashes so blonde that they looked invisible until to got up close, and Bucky got close a lot. He found himself captured by the beauty of the sleeping angel of a man next to him more often than he realized, most of the time being pulled out of his daydreaming when Steve laughed at him and called him a sap. 

But what could he do? He loved Steven Grant Rogers with all of his heart. 

He often thought that the man was crazy for staying with him when Bucky was so… unpredictable? Unloveable? Undesirable? Bucky couldn’t find the right word, but it wasn’t something positive.

Truthfully, Bucjy thought of himself as a monster in a lot of ways, his body not even his own, with the big metal lump that was meant to be an arm. He loved Steve, and he knew that Steve loved him back, but he always felt like he wasn’t worthy of someone so perfect. 

Bucky was broken out of his thoughts by Steve stirring slightly, snuggling closer to Bucky’s side and muttering something unintelligible in his sleep. 

He found himself smiling as Steve pressed his body against Bucky’s, both of them naked from the previous night’s activities. God, he loved his Stevie. 

“I can feel you staring at me, Buck,” Steve mumbled, refusing to open his eyes. Bucky chuckled, pressing a kiss to the smaller man’s temple. 

“Of course I’m staring at you, you’re the most beautiful man in the world,” Steve hummed against Bucky’s chest, still not opening his eyes. 

“I’m not beautiful and we both know it, Buck. I’m just a kid from Brooklyn who never knew when to run from a fight,” Steve fixed Bucky with his angelic blue eyes, something Bucky would never get tired of seeing. 

“You are beautiful, Stevie, you’re the most beautiful man in the world, I’m just glad you chose me,” Steve huffed out a laugh, face still pressed to Bucky’s chest and breathing in the morning air. 

“Sure, Mr. Super Soldier,”

Bucky laughed, pressing his face into Steve’s hair and breathing in the scent. 

Steve smelled like the farm, with a hint of summer rain. It was just Steve, something that never changed. 

“When do you have to go?” Steve asked, propping himself up on his elbow and meeting Bucky’s eyes, running his hand through the other man’s long brunet hair. Bucky just sighed, leaning into his husband’s touch and finding comfort in the hands, that were slightly calloused from holding pencils and paint brushed, massaging his scalp. 

“I’m not sure,” he mumbled, almost purring when Steve started to massage his neck slightly. His husband could do sinful things with those long artist’s fingers, and massaging wasn’t where it stopped. “Fury told me I had time off, but I’m not sure how long that will last. Sometimes it’s a month, others it’s two days. I think it depends on whether or not there’s a threat,”

Bucky managed to get through his words, pausing slightly when Steve sat up to work on his back. He found himself melting into puddy as Steve worked on his tense shoulders. 

“Well, we better make the most of it,” Steve smirked as Bucky just hummed in agreement, in too much bliss to talk. 

“When did you get so good at this?” Bucky asked, opening his eyes slightly to see Steve smirking at him. 

“Well, when you’re married to someone for nearly ten years, you tend to get good at knowing what they like,” Steve pressed his fingers onto the area where flesh turned to metal, running his fingers over the faded scars there. 

“You never told me how you got these,” Steve muttered, tracing the faint pink outlines around the metal shoulder. Bucky sighed, looking back at Steve. There was a reason he never told this story.

“When they first gave me the arm, after I had fallen, I didn’t want it. There was still a part of me that wanted to be James Barnes, and the arm reminded me of the fact that I didn’t have control,” Bucky took a deep breath, seeing the concern and understanding in Steve’s face, 

“I tried to pry the arm off. That didn’t work, so I started scraping at it with my fingernails, eventually breaking the skin. It happened so many times that now there are permanent scars,”

Steve lifted his hands away from the scars and gently guided Bucky’s face to meet his eyes. 

“Bucky, I’m not going to give you a bullshit ‘I’m sorry this happened to you’ speech because I’m sure you’ve heard it enough. Instead, I’m going to tell you all the good things that you do with your arm,” Steve smiled slightly, straddling Bucky’s waist and putting his hands on Bucky’s shoulders laughing at the man’s confused look. 

“You take things out of the oven because the heat doesn’t bother you. You’re able to lift furniture that’s too heavy for me without breaking a sweat. You make dinner most nights because you can reach directly into pans and grab the hot food without fear of burning yourself. You do the heavy lifting on the farm so that I don’t have to and you make sure to always protect me. Bucky, I don’t see how anything that does that can be seen as a bad thing,”

Bucky looked up at Steve with wide eyes, a heart so full of love that he felt like he might explode. 

“Stevie-”

“Listen, Buck. Everything I just said was true, I probably forgot some things, but your arm is a part of you, and I love it just as much as any other part,” Steve leaned down and kissed Bucky slowly, pulling away and kissing down his neck and towards his arm, then peppering the whole area with kisses, smiling as tears welled in Bucky’s eyes. 

“I love you,” Bucky chocked out, a tear escaping his eye and trailing down his cheek. 

Steve smiled, kissing Bucky again, slow, but not without passion. 

Both of them continued for a while, whispering ‘I love you’s between the passionate kisses. 

One hour later, Steve and Bucky were both sitting in the living room, lazily drinking coffee in their pajama pants and bathrobes, Bucky reading the newspaper while Steve sketched something. 

“Do you want to do the horses-” Steve’s words were interrupted by the sound of a car pulling up to their driveway, making both of them tense. 

Whenever a car came to their house, it was usually something to do with SHIELD, and that wasn’t ever something good. 

“Do you know who...?” Steve trailed off as Bucky shook his head, getting to his feet and carefully making his way to the door with a dagger he had produced out of thin air (Steve had a very strict ‘no firearms in the house’ rule)

Bucky waited by the door, Steve still sitting on the couch with his hand on Anatoly, all three of them still and silent. 

Someone knocked on the door and Bucky opened it to reveal the one and only Tony Stark who eyed the knife in Bucky’s hand. 

“Hello to you too,” Tony muttered, pushing the knife down and raising an eyebrow. 

Bucky sighed, stepping back to let Tony in who just raised an eyebrow, “When I showed you this place, that wasn’t an invitation to show up whenever you pleased,”

Tony sighed and took off his sunglasses, fixing Bucky with a look. 

“Barnes, I wouldn’t be here if this wasn’t important,” Tony eyed Steve who had yet to move from his spot, still resting his hand on Anatoly who kept his gaze on Stark. 

“Well, spit it out,” Bucky bared his teeth slightly, more than a little upset over the fact that Tony had bothered him during a beak. 

“I need you to scare some kids with me,” Bucky raised an eyebrow, unimpressed, but Tony just continued, “I found out a few days ago that Peter is being bullied at school-”

“By who?” Steve asked, getting up and sounding more dangerous than Tony ever heard Bucky sound (contrary to popular belief, Steve was the scary one in their relationship)

“Some asshole named Eugene Thompson. Anyways, Peter’s school is going on a field trip to the Avengers compound, ever since it was announced, Peter’s been getting bullied more. That’s the only reason I know about it, he told me when it got too bad. Should have told me from the start, but that’s beside the point,”

Tony looked angry with himself, and Bucky couldn’t really blame him. His kid had been getting picked on, and he didn’t know until it got worse. 

“So, Peter’s class is coming to the compound, and I need you guys to be there. I’m not going to let this little shit get away with bullying Peter, and I feel like having an ex-Soviet assassin on my side might help the case,” Tony had a smirk playing on his lips, so did Bucky. 

“Can I come too?” Steve asked, giving Tony a look that didn’t give him much of a choice. 

“Sure. Pack what you’ll need for a few days, we’re going to scare a kid,”

~

Steve hadn’t seen the Avengers compound before. Sure, Bucky had told him about it, but Steve had never actually set foot in the place. 

“What do you think?” Tony asked, eyeing Steve. 

Steve smirked, “It’s alright,” he said, leaving a spluttering Stark behind him as he followed Bucky inside. 

Bucky lead Steve to the room Bucky used when he had to stay here overnight. Steve looked around and noticed how plain it was, almost like a hotel room. 

“You haven’t decorated?” He asked, running his fingers over the beige bedsheets. Bucky shook his head, flopping down onto the bed. 

“Never had the need to, this isn’t my home, just a place I stay when I’m needed. Home is the farm, and I feel like that has enough decoration as it is-”

“Will you stop passive-aggressively telling me you hate the quilt?”

“I never said anything about the quilt!”

“Bullshit, Barnes,” both of them smiled at each other, lost in domestic bliss. 

Steve sighed and joined Bucky, flopping down on the bed beside him. Both of them stayed there for a few minutes, just enjoying all the peaceful moments they got. 

“Who in their right mind would want to hurt Peter?” Bucky asked, breaking the silence and rolling over to face his husband. 

Steve just sighed, grabbing Bucky’s hand, “I’m not sure, but they’re gonna have hell to pay when we meet them,” Bucky smiled a little, kissing Steve softly. 

“Damn right,” he mumbled against Steve’s lips, both of them lost in each other’s eyes. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I STARTED WATCHING 'AVATAR THE LAST AIR BENDER' AND ITS SO GOOD HOLY CRAP

Steve spent the rest of the day going around the compound, looking at all the different rooms with Bucky by his side for periodic commentary. It was impressive, but the identical rooms and bright lights reminded him too much of HYDRA at some points, the memories still plaguing his mind nearly a decade later. 

Bucky seemed to sense this so he steered Steve away from the harsh light of the offices, to the more softly lit Avengers common area. 

Even though Bucky had been held captive by HYDRA longer, Steve had more lasting effects of their torture. Bucky had almost gotten used to the constant pain and harsh treatment after a few decades, and it got to the point where it wasn’t something he even recognized as unusual until Steve came along and treated him with complete kindness. 

Steve, on the other hand, had never been treated that way. The five weeks HYDRA had him were the worst of his life, and he went through more pain there than ever. Not only was he beaten regularly, but he was also used to test experimental medicines, seeing as he was constantly sick. 

The feeling of being injected with things he knew nothing about, not knowing what they would do to his body, was something that plagued his nightmares almost every night for the first few years of their freedom. 

Bucky had tried to help, but he didn’t remember most of his torture. The lasting effects of it were always in his mind, ready to pounce, but with his constant memory wipes, he just remembered pain, not the things that specifically caused it. 

Steve remembered everything, and nothing would ever get it out of his brain. Some of the medicine had cured his sicknesses, while others had made his head spin and his nose bleed until he passed out. Bucky had always been there to comfort him after those incidents, but the nightmares would haunt him forever. 

Many nights, when they had shared the small army cot, Steve had just wished that one day, the bleeding wouldn’t stop, or a drug would be too strong. He would die and join his mother. However, that would leave Bucky alone, and he couldn’t do that. So he held on. 

He held on through the pain, the being tied to a table and poked with multiple needles as unknown fluids entered his bloodstream and made him dizzy, sometimes from blood leaking out of his nostrils, other times from just the drugs themselves. 

“Penny for your thoughts?” A voice broke Steve out of his head, and he was grateful for whoever spoke. 

Bucky was standing next to Steve, an amused expression covering up the deep concern lacing his features. 

“Sorry, it’s just the bright lights, scientists, identical rooms,” Steve let out a shaky breath, leaning into Bucky as the other man sat down next to him. 

“I’m sorry, Stevie,” he muttered, pressing a kiss to the top of Steve’s head, “Just stay on the Avengers levels, the only lab up here is Stark’s, and these areas are built to be homier,”

“Ok,” Steve sighed, closing his eyes a little and leaning into Bucky. 

They sat in silence for a few minutes, which wasn’t unusual. Sometimes, you didn’t need to talk, and that was ok. 

“Steve!” An excited voice yelled, breaking the silence. 

Steve and Bucky turned around to see Peter standing in the doorway, his face full of glee. 

“Hi, Peter,” Steve stood up just as Peter nearly knocked him over with a hug, making Bucky laugh as they stumbled.

“What are you doing here? I thought you didn’t like leaving the farm,” Peter looked happy as he sat down, pulling Steve with him. 

Steve chuckled, making eye contact with Bucky, “Well, a little birdy told us you’ve been having some trouble with a kid at school,” Peter deflated a little as Steve spoke, blushing. 

“It’s nothing, really! I’m used to it, and he rarely gets physical, it’s just some name-calling-”

“Peter, that isn’t nothing,” Bucky interrupted, making the spiderling look at him, “We care about you, and we want you to be happy when you’re at school,” Steve nodded along with Bucky’s words. 

Peter was still blushing a little as he accepted the hugs from both Steve and Bucky. 

“Well, Tony did tell us that you’ve got a field trip coming up and that’s why you told him about the bullying in the first place, can you tell us why?” Steve asked, using a soft voice he reserved for Peter and Bucky. 

Peter fiddled with his sleeves as he spoke, “Well, all the kids at school don’t believe that I intern with Mr. Stark, except Ned and MJ. They think I’m making it up for some reason- even my teacher doesn’t believe me!”

Peter ran his fingers through his hair, sounding utterly beaten down, it broke Steve and Bucky’s hearts. 

“I’m actually not going on the field trip tomorrow,” Peter said a little sadly, “My teacher said that I needed to ‘give up the lie’ or I would embarrass the school. I didn’t and now I’m not allowed to go,”

Sulking in defeat, Peter rested his head on Steve’s shoulder, sighing as Steve ran his fingers through Peter’s hair, massaging his scalp slightly. 

“...that feels really nice,” Peter whispered into Steve’s shoulder, making Steve laugh. 

“Barnes, stop stealing my child,” Tony said as he entered the room, making said man chuckle. 

“Mr. Stark, I’m not allowed to go on the field trip tomorrow,” Peter said, making Tony spin around, looking at Peter with his intense brown eyes. 

“Are you just saying that to get out of this? ‘Cause you know that won’t work on me-”

“No, I was told that if I didn’t stop lying about the internship, I wouldn’t be allowed to go,” Tony looked livid. 

“Who said that? Who runs the school? They’re about to get fired-”

“Stark, I think that it would be best to just show his teacher that he was wrong, and I think that there’s something happening tomorrow that will give us that opportunity. We can shove it in their faces that Peter works here, and they won’t be able to do anything about it,” Steve cut in. 

“I now see why you and James work so well together,” Tony muttered, earning a smirk from Steve. 

“Alright, today has been stressful, do you want to help me make cookies?” Bucky asked Peter who nodded, smiling widely. 

~

The next day was peaceful, at least in the beginning. Steve got up before Bucky, kissing him on the cheek and receiving a sleepy groan in return. He then went to the kitchen to make pancakes for breakfast, something he knew all of the Avengers had enjoyed when they had visited him almost a year ago. 

Peter got up next, slumping onto the kitchen counter and downing the cup of coffee Steve handed to him. Both of them stayed silent for a while, Peter working on his coffee and Steve working on the pancakes. 

Natasha was the next one to join them, looking just a threatening as ever, even though she was wearing a tank-top, sweat-pants, and fuzzy socks. 

The three of them made casual conversation, but it didn’t feel forced. 

Steve was thinking about what he would do once Peter’s class arrived. He knew that he wasn’t recognized as the Winter Soldier’s husband, and that the kids wouldn’t know who he was. Bucky, on the other hand, was hard to miss with his metal arm and ‘murder stare’ as Steve liked to call it. 

“Where will the kids be coming in the compound?” Steve asked once there was an opening in the conversation.

Natasha shrugged, “Most of the time tours stay near the offices, the museum, but Tony probably pulled some strings to get this particular group to come up here or to the training room,” 

Peter opened his mouth but no sound came out, he just gaped at Natasha who didn’t seem to notice it, or she was just ignoring it. 

“Did you get someone to look after the horses and Anatoly?” Natasha asked politely, sipping her cup of tea. She liked to reserve coffee for when she really needed it, like Mondays. 

“Yup, I have a friend who lives less than a twenty minutes drive from us, met him when I went to college-”

“You went to college?” Peter asked,

Steve smiled, “After HYDRA, Bucky and I both needed a way to stop ourselves from being consumed by the past. I’d always wanted to go to art school, but never had any money. It seemed like the obvious choice,” Steve slipped a pancake onto Peter’s plate and the teen ate it quickly, grinning. 

“Barnes got a man with an education, nice,” Natasha remarked, making Steve laugh. 

“It’s not that big of a deal, I’ve just loved art for my whole life, I wanted to do something with that. Of course, with his Avenger-ing, we don’t need my paycheck, but I enjoy it,” Steve slid the next pancake onto Natasha’s plate, her grin almost matching Peter’s as she wolfed it down. 

Bucky walked into the room, his eyes still half-closed from drowsiness, as he wrapped his arms around Steve’s waist and gave him a soft kiss. 

“Morning, babydoll,” Bucky said quietly, his voice husky from sleep. Steve smiled and touched Bucky’s cheek as he kissed him again. 

Natasha cleared her throat and Steve pulled back, grinning. 

“What? I feel like we kept that very PG considering he’s got his morning voice,” Steve defended, earning an eye roll from Natasha. 

“You’re both horrible,” she said, returning to her pancake with a little less energy. 

“What was that?” Peter asked quietly, sounding almost scared. 

Bucky saw his chance. 

“Well, Peter, when two people love each other very much-”

“No!” Peter covered his ears, shaking his head, “You are not giving me the sex talk right after you were eye-fucking your husband in front of me,”

“That was hardly eye-fucking,” Steve defended, flipping a pancake, “If you think that that was eye-fucking, you haven’t seen anything, yet,” Peter’s eyes widened in horror as he shook his head. 

“That mental image is so wrong,” he mumbled, resting his head against the countertop with a soft  _ thunk _ .

“Why?” Steve asked, obliviously, slipping a pancake onto Bucky’s plate. 

“ _ Why _ ? Because you two are like my back up dads! Thinking of anything more than cuddling is terrifying,”

The whole kitchen was silent. 

“We’re like your what?” Bucky asked, eyes full of confusion. Peter tried to backtrack. 

“I mean, you guys helped me, and you kind of look after me like parents and you make cookies- just forget I said anything,” Peter was blushing like crazy, not meeting anyone’s eyes. 

Bucky reached over the counter and took his hand. 

“Peter, you have no idea how much it means to us that you think of us that way,” he said, Peter finally looking up to meet his eyes. 

Peter just shrugged, “I mean, you’re kind of like the people I can fall back on. I have Mr. Stark, and he’s amazing, but I feel like you guys are just… in my corner?” Peter phrased it like a question, lowering his head again. 

Steve joined Bucky, taking Peter’s other hand. 

“Peter, thank you, it means a lot to know that you think of us that way, and of course we’re in your corner,” Steve squeezed Peter’s hand lightly. 

“Is it bad that the first thing I thought of when I saw this was ‘why are we having a prayer circle?” Clint said as he walked in, taking the bottle of orange juice from the fridge and drinking from it. 

Natasha kicked him. 

“Damn, our prayers for satan to take you didn’t work, we’ll have to try again tomorrow,” Bucky sighed like that was a huge effort and took a sip from his coffee. 

Peter snorted, returning to his pancake. 

“You guys do realize that it’s nearly 11 am, right?” Clint asked after a moment of silence, raising an eyebrow. 

“Shit, the tour!” Steve exclaimed, standing up. 

“Usually tour groups are in the labs until lunch, then they go to the museums. I’m pretty sure they’ll be coming here instead of the museum, so you’ve got some time,” Natasha reassured them. 

“Wanna get changed, doll?” Bucky asked with a smirk, making Steve roll his eyes. 

“I’m gonna take a shower, and you’re not coming with me, we need to be quick-”

“Technically, it would be quicker if we took a shower together-”

“Technically, you just want to see me naked,” Steve said, walking out of the room with a smirk and leaving a pouting Bucky behind. 

“It was worth a shot,” Bucky mumbled, taking a drink from his coffee.

“I’m going to regret letting you meet my classmates,” Peter muttered, getting up to get changed as well. 

Bucky grinned and walked towards his room to put on a shirt.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE LAST CHAPTER!!!!
> 
> If you have any ideas on how I can continue this series, please leave a comment!!

Steve and Peter were hanging out in the Avengers common area while Bucky and Natasha trained in the gym. They both had a tradition to spar with each other whenever they could, considering that they were both ex-Russian assassins, and they liked to see who would win. 

Peter was doing homework for chemistry class, and Steve was sketching. He had wanted to help Peter with his homework, but one look at the paper had told him that it was way too advanced for him. 

“Steve, when did you know you loved James?” Peter asked, looking up from his paper. The question took Steve by surprise, making him set down his pencil. 

“Well,” he thought, “Our situation wasn’t normal, but I guess I knew I loved him when they took him away, and I almost threw up with worry,” Steve sighed, sitting up properly. 

“It was hard to tell if it was love, or if it was just me wanting a friendly face. At some points, I think it was both. But in the end, I realized that nobody would ever make me feel the same way, and I haven’t looked back since,” Steve smiled a little, looking at Peter who had a thoughtful expression on his face. 

“Why are you asking? You got someone at school?” Steve teased, making Peter roll his eyes. 

“No, I was just wondering. I’ve never really dated anyone before, so I was curious,”

“Aren’t you just curious about everything?” Steve teased, poking Peter in the side and making the teen laugh. 

Steve patted Peter’s shoulder, smiling fondly at him, before returning to his sketch. 

Suddenly, the elevator bell rang, making both Steve and Peter look towards it quickly. 

“Here, we have the Avengers living area-“ The woman speaking froze as she saw Steve and Peter, her face filled with confusion. 

“Hello, you must be Midtown,” Steve greeted, standing up. The tour guide looked at him curiously, obviously not sure who he was. 

“Sir, I hate to ask this, but who are you?” She questioned, making Steve smile a little. 

“Oh, I’m just the husband of one of the Avengers,” Steve put out his hand for her to shake. 

“I didn’t know any of the Avengers were married,” she laughed, stepping into the room followed by a whole crowd of students. 

“Yeah, well, they’re pretty private people,” Steve joked, smiling easily. 

“Steve, you literally made pancakes for them this morning while Natasha was in her pajamas,” Peter said, still working on his homework, obviously avoiding eye contact with any of his classmates (Ned and MJ weren’t in this class).

“I said that they’re private in general, not private around me,” Steve grinned. 

“Peter?” One of the people from the class exclaimed, finally getting a good look at the kid who was sitting on the ground. 

Peter winced, looking up at the group and waving awkwardly. 

“Peter, what are you doing here?” The teacher asked, looking furious, “I told you that you weren’t allowed to go on this field trip-“

“Seriously? You still don’t believe him?” Steve sounded furious glaring at the man who had spoken. 

“Well, it’s common knowledge that Stark Industries doesn’t take high school interns-“

“Yes, but Peter isn’t a Stark Industries intern, he’s Tony Stark’s intern, big difference,” Steve spat out, “That fact that you didn’t even both to check, to see the documents Peter has to prove his internship here, is honestly insulting to Peter and everyone he works with,”

Steve fumed, blue eyes full of fire. 

“Steve, it’s alright, it’s not the most believable thing-“

“Peter, you are the smartest person I’ve ever met, you’re going to overtake Tony one day, and I’ll be damned if you don’t take credit for the things you’ve accomplished,” Steve returned his glare to the class. 

“Who here didn’t believe Peter?” Steve asked, sounding like he was giving commands. 

Nobody moved.

“Alright, I’ll start listing names,” Steve spat, “Where is Eugene Thomson?-”

“Oh yeah, the class is here!” Tony clapped his hands together as he entered the living area, a smile on his face, though anyone could see the rage in his expression, and the students looked terrified. 

“Mr. Stark, you don’t have to do this-”

“Of course I do, Peter,” Tony said, his eyes softening as his gaze turned towards the boy, “I care about you, and I want you to be happy,”

“Mr. Stark-”

“Nope, let me talk,” Tony raised a finger in a teasing manner, “I would like you to tell this group right here how long you’ve been working with me,” 

Peter blushed, rubbing the back of his neck, “I’ve been working with you for about a year?”

“Exactly,” Tony said, facing the group again, “Peter is probably the smartest person I know, other than myself of course. Yet, he came to me two days ago to tell me that his class is coming to the compound, and that he was getting bullied by his peers,”

Peter kept getting more red as Tony continued talking. 

“Now, I, of course, was completely ready to shut down the school,” Tony made eye contact with the teacher, who gulped, “But Peter, being the amazing person he is, convinced me not to. Instead, I got the other two people who care about him almost as much as I do,

“Meet Steve Rogers, the Winter Soldier’s husband-”

“More like Bucky Barnes’ husband,” Bucky announced, sitting down heavily next to Steve on the couch, who rolled his eyes. 

Almost all of the students gasped. 

“Mr. Stark, I’m so sorry to hear about what has been happening to Peter-” The teacher started, but quieted down as Steve glared at her. 

“You don’t get to talk,” he said, “You’re the reason why Bucky and I had to come down here in the first place. If teachers did their jobs and looked out for their students, none of this would have been a problem. Also, why did you tell Peter that he couldn’t go on this trip? He is one of the best people I know, and he would never lie for attention,”

“Why is Parker so special?” the boy who was probably Eugene Thompson yelled out, making all three men turn to face him, their eyes raging with fire. 

“I can talk about Peter for hours and still not have covered everything amazing about him,” Tony said, making Eugene shrink back, “He’s smart, and he will probably be smarter than me soon. He’s extremely kind and caring, in fact, he’d one of the main reasons I remember to eat every day. He’s also helpful, funny- I can go all day,”

“Not to mention, he’s a hell of a fighter,” Bucky added, making Peter blush. 

“I’m really not, James-”

“Peter, you are an amazing person,” Steve interrupted the boy, “I’ve known that much since Bucky showed up with you at our house at six in the morning,”

Peter laughed while Bucky rubbed the back of his neck, smiling a little as Steve gave him a mock glare. 

“Rogers, stop trying to steal my kid,” Tony mock glared at Steve, grabbing Petter and pulling him close, to which the teenager blushed. 

“Relax, Tony. Peter couldn’t love you any less if he tried,”

“Oh yeah, he’s your kid, Stark, we’re just like his backup parents,” Bucky added with a smirk, making Peter groan. 

“Is that going to be a thing now?”

“Of course it is!” Steve grinned, “You’re the one who thought of it,”

“But if we broke up, who would get custody of Anatoly and who would get custody of Peter?” Bucky asked, sounding like the answer deeply troubled him. 

Steve laughed, a small snort escaping him as Bucky’s face broke out into a grin. 

“The answer is simple: we’re not going to break up, idiot,” Steve said, making Bucky beam at him. 

It was obvious that the students around them had no idea what was going on, and they looked half scared and half relieved that the Winter Soldier was smiling. 

“Anyways, you guys have overstayed your welcome, please escort them out,” Tony said to the tour guide who nodded quickly and ushered the students out, a dumbstruck look still on all of their faces. 

“That was fun,” Bucky said after a moment’s silence, making Steve snort. 

“You just like scaring people who know better than to not be afraid of you,” he smirked, poking Bucky in the side. 

“Thank you guys,” Peter said, making them all focus on him again, “I didn’t know how much I needed to hear you guys say those things, thank you for standing up for me,”

Tony smiled softly, “Of course, kiddo. You say the word and we’re there,”

“Even if it’s six in the morning,” Steve teased. 

He was rewarded by a smile on Peter’s face. A genuine one that showed how safe he felt. 

“Now, who wants to help me make cookies?” Bucky asked. 

“Me!” Peter yelled, running out of the living room and towards the kitchen.

“I’m so glad I met him,” Tony mumbled as Bucky and Peter walked off together. 

“Me too,” Steve said, smiling at the two people he loved the most in this cruel world. 

Some scars might be permanent, but that doesn’t mean they’re not beautiful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want to vote on the next part of the series, here's the link!
> 
> https://forms.gle/MgngbbRFAdvn7d6W8

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a kudos and/or comment :)
> 
> You can find updates about my stories/my life on social media!
> 
> Tumblr: rox-fanfics  
> Instagram: rox_fanfics  
> Twitter: rox_fanfics  
> Tik Tok: rox_fanfics


End file.
